


The Frog Princess in Love

by Starship_Captain_88



Series: Stories from The Server [4]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Duty, F/M, Falling In Love, First Dance, Loss, Love, Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-31
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-03 09:00:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24468343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starship_Captain_88/pseuds/Starship_Captain_88
Summary: The Princess Onecornchippy, heir apparent to the Imperial House of the Frog Totem, is feeling blue. Her love life is in the doldrums.Her relationship with the Frog Prince Yancy is strictly platonic, so Chippy has to look elsewhere.She decides to go to a tea dance, where she meets a handsome US Air Force pilot.
Series: Stories from The Server [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1755934





	1. An Impromptu Dance Lesson

# The Frog Princess in Love, ch.1

Although I am the Princess Onecornchippy, the heir apparent to the Imperial House of the Frog Totem, once again I am feeling down. Or maybe it’s because of who I am that I get this way.

When I returned to The Server from my IRL trip, I found my palace was a complete mess. It was Yancy’s fault, of course. He used it as a base during the quest to rescue Mariella, who was lost in the time-streams, and he hadn’t stopped to neaten up. 

There was mess everywhere. The kitchen looked like a warzone and the fridge was nearly empty. He had left two TVs and a load of discs on the dining room table. The bathroom was dirty and most of the towels had been used.

All I wanted was a shower, a light lunch, and a relaxing afternoon. Instead I had to clean up everywhere because I have a touch of OCD. Plus, it was still shark week, which didn’t improve my mood.

When Yancy finally returned, you can bet I gave him the sharp edge of my tongue! 

Yancy took his rebuke like a good Waifu. He was obviously expecting it. He knew I would forgive him in the end, because he had acted from good intentions.

To be fair, it was a noble and successful quest. Mariella was rescued from the time-streams and joyfully reunited with her lover SilverRose. Yancy’s detective partner Ms Moon Potato was proud and happy to complete another big case. It had been a great adventure.

Anyway, Yancy doted on me to restore my good mood. He poured wine for me. He massaged my feet. He listened to my worries, and offered what comfort and help he could. Finally I began to relax.

Yancy seems a bit down himself. He’s bluer than a Kuudere detective ought to be who has just finished a successful case, even allowing for the scolding I gave him. Something must have happened to him during the quest. I don’t want to ask what. I know from experience that Yancy will talk about it when he is ready. 

Although we live together, our relationship is strictly platonic. I took him as Waifu because the heir to the throne needs a boi on her arm at formal events. He is more like a big brother or an uncle to me than anything else. We’re close friends and that’s enough. It suits both of us.

I know Yancy has various romantic interests in The Server and IRL. I don’t know if they still include his errant Waifu, Lola#1343 aka ‘ _Umeko | Deadly Viper Squad_ ’. She seems to ignore all the messages and love letters he sends. 

He once had a very short and acrimonious affair with ‘ _Hexie do not ping ty_ ’, best forgotten about. They seem to be on speaking terms again now, which is good. 

Catgirls have been out of the picture since the incident with Holo, of course. And there’s that maybe/maybe not girlfriend in Tokyo, IRL.

My own love life is basically non-existent. I need to do something about that cause it’s getting me down. I’ll have another glass of wine and think about what I should do.

A steam bath and a massage, a manicure, pedicure, professional hair and makeup, sexy perfume, new clothes, and a light change of Aspect so as not to be recognised as the Princess. Then hit the clubs. If I don’t find someone, at least I can have fun dancing. That’s what I call a plan!

I sip my wine and begin to shop fashion on my smartphone. Yancy gets out his laptop to write up his latest case.

He starts to do that odd thing again. He’s talking out loud to himself as he does stuff. It’s as if he makes the world real by telling stories about it. I don’t think he knows he’s doing it. It’s rather cute, actually.

What sort of dress-up should I go for... Formal, bodycon, fetish? Anything goes these days, in the right club, but I don’t want to look like a footballer’s WAG or an escort girlygirl.

What do I actually want out of this? Do I want a bit of fun, companionship, a one-night stand? Do I want to find love in an intense affair? I really don’t know!

“Love is so fucking difficult!”

“Tell me about it,” he replies.

I hadn’t realised I spoke out loud. Yancy is looking at me. He has that look in his eyes, the one that says, “It’s Martini time.”

“No, Yancy! No cocktails tonight. This wine is enough.”

“As you wish, my Princess.”

Now I know he is blue. Normally he would defy me and drink what he wants. But it’s no use asking him about it. He’ll tell me when he’s ready.

I go back to musing about my own problems. Maybe I need a wing-girl on this mission. Chanmi would come with me if I asked her. It doesn’t solve the problem of who and what to search for, though.

At least I’ve worked out I prefer older bois. I want someone with a bit of maturity and experience. Someone like Yancy, actually… Yes... No! He’s off limits. Let’s not go there.

There must be some mature guys around The Server. Maybe clubbing is the wrong idea. Maybe art shows are the place to find mature bois. Or tea dances, they are the latest thing this summer.

I’ll look into tea dances. It would be exercise if nothing else.

If I’m tea dancing I’ll need a nice cocktail frock and new shoes. I’ll need to know a bit about dancing too, I suppose. How can I find out?

“Yancy, dear.”

“Yes, Chippy?”

“Do you know anything about dancing?”

“Well, only ballroom dancing.”

“That’s perfect! Can you show me the basics?”

“Er… Yeah, sure. Right now, do you mean? Why the sudden interest?”

“I’ve decided to go to a tea dance.”

“That will be great fun, I’m sure. Okay, how shall we do this? We need some music and a bit of space.”

He moves the table to open up some floor space in the living room, and finds a selection of music on his laptop.

“Now Chippy, the basic principle of ballroom, like all dance, is to move in time with the music. The main difference from modern disco dancing is that you spend most of your time ‘in hold’ with your partner. You’ve probably seen it on TV.”

“Yeah, and old Hollywood movies.”

“I use my left hand to hold your right arm extended, and my right arm behind your back, touching your shoulder blade to guide you. You put your left hand on my upper arm or shoulder.”

“Like this?” I move into his arms.

“Yes, that’s right. “ He adjusts our positions slightly. “The boi leads and the girl follows, though nowadays sometimes that gets reversed, and then you reverse the hold.”

Yancy holds me surprisingly close. We’re looking over each other’s left shoulders. Actually I can barely see over his shoulder because he’s like 25cm taller than me. He steps left, together and back, together and right, together and forward, together. I follow instinctively. Our legs glide in between each others’. 

“Let’s put a tune on and I will show you a few basic steps,” he says.

Yancy runs me through some basic Cha Cha, Waltz and Foxtrot moves with different music. It’s harder than I thought. He also shows me how to do a spin, which is fun.

“Look, Chippy, the key thing is to feel the beats and make sure you lead or follow with the correct foot. But to really look good, you have to flow. You mustn’t be stompy. Be flexible in your middle, and swing your hips. Don’t worry too much about formal technique. You’re not there to win a competition. It’s social dancing. The point is to have fun and impress the bois or girls.

“I need more practice.”

“If you can manage the basic hold and a few steps, you’ll look really good as long as you keep in time. Most members can only do close dancing or slow dancing, like high school students do at proms, who haven’t had any real dance lessons. I can show you that too, if you don’t know.”

“Please.”

You might think it odd that a Princess wouldn’t know about such things, but it’s not protocol.

“Okay. It’s more like loose cuddling than a dance position. It’s difficult to do any real dance steps because your legs get in the way of each other. Like this...”

He brings me directly in front of him and puts both hands loosely on my waist. I put my arms on his shoulders. We sway slowly to the rhythm. 

“This is rather... intimate, Yancy.”

He lets go of me and steps away.

“Yes. It’s a dance for the end of the evening when you’ve found someone you really like, and you think you may want to go on to some other kind of activities.

“Anyway, that’s the absolute basics of ballroom. Well, Cha Cha is Latin, but the distinction isn’t important for a beginner.”

“Thanks. That was fun!”

“My pleasure. We can do a couple more sessions before the dance, to get you confident. And you can try to assume a dance related Aspect. Ginger Rogers or Cyd Charisse, maybe. Did you know her legs were insured for $1,000,000? Watch a few classic Hollywood dance musicals for inspiration.

“Let’s watch one together.”

“Okay, when I’ve finished writing up the case. Listen, you’ll need some dancing shoes. There are some very stylish ones available. As you’re a beginner, don’t go for a high heel.”

Yancy goes back to writing. I go on searching for a nice frock.

I easily find a sophisticated, sexy, A-line cocktail dance dress, and order it in dark blue. It’s off the shoulder, with a scoop neck and an asymmetric skirt. It’ll look great teamed with silver sandals, which have low heels for dancing, and a white clutch purse.

There’s a tea dance next Saturday afternoon. I buy a ticket and book my pampering for the morning. Awesome! Now I just need to get the new frock adjusted for fit, and choose my jewellery.

I decide to invite Chanmi to be my wing-girl. I invite her to come and be pampered with me, my treat, before we go on to the tea dance. 

Over the next few days Yancy gives me a couple more practice sessions. I start to feel like I can do this. I’m getting pumped for the dance!

He seems more cheerful too.

“Have you had good news, Yancy?”

“Umeko | Deadly Viper Squad and I are back on good terms with each other. I’m so happy! I need to think of a treat for her.”

“Take her to the tea dance.”

“I don’t know if she can dance.”

“Ask her, you silly boi!”

“Yes, I suppose I could do that.”

“Don’t be so passive, Yancy! She’s your Waifu. You should cherish her and look after her.”

Yancy takes my advice and pings Umeko. She can dance a bit. She’ll come to the tea dance.

“There you are. Well done! That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

He takes it in good part.

“I hope there won’t be too many girls. I want to meet some bois.”

“The organisers usually try to balance the numbers,” Yancy say, “but these days members don’t mind so much to dance with anyone, boi or girl, as long as they’re interesting partners.”

“Yancy, if I meet someone interesting, and I want to go off without Chanmi, will you look after her?

“That sounds a bit hetero-normative. Chanmi’s been in The Server a lot longer than me. She’s got loads more XP. If anyone needs protecting it’s me.”

“And I thought you had a tough Kuudere detective Aspect. Look, really I just mean don’t let her go home lonely and sad.”

“Oh well, if you put it like that, I’ll invite her back to the Palace with Umeko. I’ll make dinner for everyone and we can veg out with anime movies and videogames. Or even a traditional board game. They are all the rage now.”

“Won’t it cramp your style, Yancy? Don’t you want to be alone with Umeko?”

“Don’t worry. Umeko and I are just starting out. We need to get to know each other a lot better before anything happens. I don’t know where we’ll end up in the long run.”

Maybe none of us really know where we are going to end up...

TO BE CONTINUED...

© 2019 Starship Captain 88


	2. At the Tea Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone enjoys social dancing.
> 
> The Princess Onecornchippy attracts the attentions of a handsome helicopter pilot.

## The Frog Princess in Love, ch.2

It’s Saturday morning. The day of the much anticipated tea dance!

Yancy makes us a late breakfast, after which my taxi arrives, so I leave him to do the washing-up. Ha ha!

I collect Chanmi from her place and we head to the salon for our pre-party pampering. Chanmi is super-excited. I’m super-excited too. Neither of us has ever had a full professional make-over like this.

It takes several hours. It’s such good fun! We come out glowing with health from the sauna and massage. Then we have to choose nail stylings to match our dresses. Mine is dark blue, with silver shoes and a white clutch purse. I have a French polish which goes with everything and looks cool and sophisticated. 

Chanmi is trying to assume the Aspect of Kylie Minogue. Her dress is pale gold lamé, with bare arms and a short skirt with side vents. She’s got a gold belt and gold sandals. The stylist manages to persuade Chanmi that gold nails are too much, and she also has a French polish.

We have a light lunch in the salon, then it’s on to hair and make-up. We’ve both got long, dark hair. I’m feeling adventurous. I decide to have my slight wave straightened. I get a dramatic short, page boy cut, with thick bangs, or fringe as Yancy would say in his English way. Finished, my hair looks like a glossy black helmet. It feels cool and sexy.

Chanmi has her wave accentuated and her hair piled up on top of her head in a loose flowing spiral held together with a golden fascinator which contrasts beautifully.

Then we get dressed in our party frocks and we’re off to the dance!

The tea dance promoter has taken over the Dream Disco for the event. Inside it has been decorated with flower garlands, and there are tables and chairs along both long sides of the dance floor. There is a small band warming up on the stage.

At the opposite end of the hall are the refreshments, consisting of tea, coffee, fruit juice, champagne punch and rum punch, with sandwiches and small cakes of various types. There are waitbois and waitgirls to help serve guests and keep everything neat.

Chanmi and I take a table in the middle of the side opposite the entrance, so we can see members arriving.

“Is Doctor Mayoi coming, Chanmi?”

“Mayoi is busy, so I’m on my own today. I will stay faithful of course, but even so I’m going to dance as much as I can!”

“Good for you. Listen, if you’re free this evening, Yancy said to come over to the Palace. He and Umeko are having dinner there and playing videogames and they’d be happy for extra company.”

“Won’t I be in the way?”

“Don’t worry. Yancy said it’s fine, he squared it with Umeko. Actually he’s cooking dinner. He likes cooking to impress girls. The more the merrier, he told me.”

More guests arrive. Yancy comes in, arm in arm with Umeko. He’s wearing the black and red rowing blazer he brought back from the time travel quest, and the matching boater hat, and a cravat! It’s a Jazz Age look.

Umeko is dressed as a flapper girl. She’s wearing a strappy black dress, which shows off her shoulders. It’s got a short skirt and lines of tassels or fringes which are going to fan out when she spins. A black feather fascinator in her short blonde hair. It’s amazing how smart and sexy girls dressed in the 1920s.

“Hello Princess, Chanmi. You look great. Like a million Coins!”

“Ms Umeko. I simply love your flapper dress. You and Yancy 100% look the part.”

Yancy and Umeko take the table next to us.

It’s clear that members have taken inspiration from the late Victorian period right up to the 1940s for their costumes. There are even a few soldier bois and girls, from the war years. It’s really fun to see all the different styles mixing. I lean over to ask Yancy a question.

“How is this all going to work?”

“An MC will announce each of the dances, and any specials like a Boi’s Excuse Me.”

“What’s that?”

“During an Excuse Me unaccompanied members are allowed to cut in on dancing couples and carry off their choice of partner. It’s your chance to get a dance with a hot partner you couldn’t get hold of in the normal way.”

“Will there be a Girl’s Excuse Me too?”

“Of course. Also today there are two pro couples dancing. That’s to help make sure someone is on the floor, otherwise members are shy until they’ve got a few drinks in them.”

I’m beginning to see why. I don’t think I would like to be the first one out on the floor, in front of 100 pairs of eyes!

“The pros will be good to watch to see what the steps are, and sometimes you can get a dance with one of them, which is really fun.”

“Do we have to dance all the dances?” I asked.

“Of course not, you can sit out any you don’t like, or if you get tired. Just join in or drop out whenever you like. It’s very casual. You can have drinks at any time, and the main tea, the food, I mean, will be served when the band take their break about half-way.”

The band plays a short fanfare and the MC takes her place.

“Girls and Bois, welcome to the Dream Disco tea dance!”

A roll of applause around the hall.

“Our first dance will be a Foxtrot.”

The band plays, the pro dancers move smoothly round the floor. Yancy takes Umeko’s hand and leads her on to the floor. They get into hold, and… off they go!

“Gosh, Chippy. Look at Umeko! I never knew she could dance like that.”

“I reckon she and Yancy have done some practice in secret. Anyway, do you want to dance? Let’s get out there and shake our tail feathers.”

“But Chippy, I hardly know anything.”

“Don’t worry. Just think of what Kylie would do, and follow my lead. Yancy showed me the basic steps for this dance.”

I lead Chanmi out. I assume the boi’s position in hold, and we’re away!

Chanmi is trying to hold on to her Kylie Aspect. It’s a good choice because they are both short, and Chanmi has the costume, though her hair ought to be blonde. Her hair will go blonde if it works fully.

A lot of members have tried to put on dance Aspects, but it isn’t working for them very well. There aren’t very many famous dancers, and their Aspects are thinly spread among so many members.

You can’t really hold an anonymous Aspect of “good dancer” when being a good dancer is the only part of the Aspect to hold on to. It’s too general. You need some characteristic behaviours and motifs to model.

Oh well! All the better for anyone who’s got some real dance skills. The practice I did with Yancy helps me. Chanmi’s Kylie is starting to work for her. We’re moving pretty well together.

The music ends and everyone claps. The MC announces a slow waltz for the next dance.

“Let’s sit this one out and watch, Chippy.”

We get some drinks and sit down. Yancy and Umeko are still out on the floor, orbiting slowly in the stately rhythm. They look a proper couple.

The music ends. Yancy and Umeko come to sit next to us. They are both flushed. Dancing is actually good exercise.

“Would you like a drink, Umeko?” he asks her.

“A glass of something cold, please, Yancy!”

“Chanmi, Chippy, may I refresh your drinks too?”

Yancy brings back four glasses of champagne punch.

Meanwhile the band plays on. Another dance is announced. Couples join or leave the floor as they wish. There’s a buzz of conversation around the sides of the hall.

After two more dances which we sit out, Yancy invites me to dance. It’s another waltz, a dance I practised with him.

“Don’t forget we need to reverse turn in this one, Chippy.”

It’s different being the girl. It’s like Yancy has to guide me around the floor, because I can’t look behind me. We do pretty well, though.

“Waltzing is fun, Yancy!”

“Yes, it’s surprising how far you can go with just a few simple steps.”

At the end of the dance Yancy asks me if I would like to dance again.

“Yes, please!”

The next dance is another foxtrot. The MC announces a Boi’s Excuse Me.

“Here we go. Let’s see if anyone wants to cut in on me.”

We’re half-way down the dance floor when Yancy gets a tap on the shoulder. It’s a military member. I mean he’s wearing a military uniform of some kind. Blue. American. It’s got the flag on and his name, Comulada. A Spanish name? He’s medium height, wiry build, dark hair and eyes. And a neat moustache.

Yancy hands me over with good grace, and goes for another drink.

“Well, Miss…”

“Onecornchippy.”

“Miss Onecornchippy, I’m very glad of the chance to dance with you. I’ve been admiring you from afar.”

“Mr Comulada, you are rather forward!”

“Please call me Mike. In my line of business you learn to make decisions quickly.”

“Very soon you must decide which way to turn, Mike.”

We reach the end of the hall and Mike gets us round the corner neatly.

We dance the length of the hall without conversation, then turn again and we’re half-way down when the dance ends.

“Mike, thank you very much for my dance.”

“I would like to dance with you some more, Miss Onecornchippy, if you will allow it.”

“I would like that. Will you come and sit with my friends for a while?” I want to find out if he came alone.

“Sure. Thank you.”

Yancy quickly re-organises the tables and chairs to accommodate Mr Comulada, and brings him a drink.

Yancy diplomatically invites Chanmi for a dance, leaving me and Umeko to chat with Mr Comulada.

“This is Umeko | Deadly Viper Squad, she is Waifu to Yancy, who is my Waifu. He’s dancing with Chanmi now.”

“Pleased to meet you, Mr Comulada…”

“It’s Lieutenant if you want to be accurate. My name is Mike Comulada. I’m a pilot officer in the US Air Force.”

“Wow, what kind of planes do you fly?”

“Helicopters. I fly a Sikorsky CH-53 on Search and Rescue missions.”

“How did you get into that, Lieutenant Mike?”

“I had a low draft number. I decided to volunteer and choose my own branch of service, rather than get drafted and end up in the infantry humping machine gun ammo. Plus, I don’t like killing people.”

“Are you in a war?” I ask.

“The Vietnam War.”

“When is the Vietnam War?”

“The 1960s.”

“Isn’t that rather late for coming to a tea dance?”

“My father went to tea dances when he was stationed in England in the Second World War. That’s how he met my mother. She was a GI Bride. I wouldn’t ever have been born except for tea dances. So I decided to come and see what it’s like.”

“What do you think of it?” asks Umeko.

“I think there are some gorgeous girls at tea dances!”

“Ha ha!”

Lt. Mike clearly is sunk deep in his Aspect. I don’t know anything about the Vietnam War. It finished a very long time before I was born. 

The dance ends, and it’s break time for the band. We join the line of members waiting to be served refreshments.

TO BE CONTINUED…

© 2020 Starship Captain 88


	3. What is love?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Princess and Lieutenant Mike leave the dance early.
> 
> Onecornchippy shows Mike some of the sights of The Server, and they go for dinner.
> 
> Mike asks Chippy to spend the night with him, she accepts him as a lover, and they make love.

After tea the band comes back in, and the dancing begins again.

I dance with Chanmi. I dance with Umeko while Yancy dances with Chanmi. I dance two dances in a row with Mike, then we sit out for a while, watching the others. I notice Mike is mostly watching me.

“How long have you been in The Server, Mike?”

“Just a couple of days. I’m new ‘in country’ and this is the first event I’ve been to.”

“These tea dances are a pretty new idea. I think they’re getting more popular. Members like something fun in the afternoon sometimes. It leaves the evening free.”

“Listen, Miss Onecornchippy, if you’re not busy this evening, how about you show me round The Server a bit, and I’ll take you to dinner?”

“You’re a fast one, Lieutenant! Do they teach you that in the air force?”

“Officers are taught to make decisions. If they turn out to be correct, all the better.”

“Alright. I accept. Let’s have another drink, then we’ll sneak out early and escape the crush.”

Mike brings two coffees.

“I thought you might need something for energy.”

“Dancing is more tiring than you think, isn’t it? Before we go, I just need to have a word with Yancy.”

Fortunately the dance after next is a Girls’ Excuse Me. I wait for Yancy to swing nearby. He’s dancing with someone I don’t know. 

No! It’s Moon Potato! I’m so used to her hard-boiled detective Aspect that I don’t recognise her in a party frock.

I tap Moon on the shoulder and apologise for cutting in.

“You’re welcome, Chippy. I’ll get back together with Yancy later.”

We begin to dance together.

“Has something come up, Husbando?” he asks me.

“Nothing bad. I’m leaving soon to show the Lieutenant around The Server.”

“Right. Well, have fun. Oh, would it be alright if Moon Potato joins my dinner party tonight?”

“Of course it’s fine. Just make sure to clean up before I get back.”

We finish the dance. Yancy goes to the bar. I collect Mike and we slip out quietly.

Outside it’s early evening. The sky is still pretty bright. We walk down to the Scarlet Cathedral, and go inside. Mike lights a candle. I light a candle too. I don’t know why.

Then I take him across the Piazza to the Great Casino. I explain the different games, and warn him against angering Saki. Yancy did it months ago, and he still hasn’t won her favour back.

“I don’t want to play, anyway,” he says. “I need to save my luck for other things. But thanks for showing me.”

Next I take him down to NSFW. Mike raises an eyebrow at that.

People make a fuss about NSFW, but it isn’t all sleaze and pornos. Well, a lot of it is, but apart from that it’s a general entertainment district with theatres, cinemas, clubs, and so on. Like Soho in London, or Kabukicho in Tokyo. 

There are some really good places which are open very late. You just need to be a bit streetwise, and not let yourself notice the sleazy stuff going on.

We find an Italian restaurant. Mike seems to be in a generous mood

“Order whatever you like, Miss… may I call you Chippy? All your friends seem to.”

“How can I refuse? It will make conversation flow easier. Leftenant Mike.”

“Why do you call me that?”

“It’s kind of a joke. It’s what Yancy would say. He’s English. He likes to play with words. He would say it as an insult, to show you he liked you. That’s how the English are.”

“You said Yancy is your Waifu. And Miss Umeko is his Waifu. I don’t understand any of that.”

“It’s a thing we have in The Server. It’s partly a kind of game, but it can be something serious if you want it to be. Yancy is my Waifu because I claimed him, but he wanted to be claimed by me. In our case it shows he is my friend and supporter.

“Yancy claimed Umeko because she wanted to be claimed. For some time after that she became standoffish, but they’re getting together now. It could become serious for them in a different way.”

“So it’s not like you’re married?”

“It can be, if you want it to be. Some couples are very close friends, or even lovers. They are Husbando and Waifu to each other, and hold Affinities with each other too. That shows they are very serious.”

“Huh, it’s kinda strange to me.”

“You’ll get used to it in time.”

The first course arrives, and a bottle of red wine. I’m not going to drink much, though. I had several glasses of punch at the dance.

The food is really good. For a while we concentrate on eating.

“Listen, Mike, you said you’re a pilot in the Vietnam War. Do you want to talk about it, or forget about it?

“Well, Chippy. It’s something you can’t forget. It’s been going for years and shows no sign of ending. It’s hurting the country as well as a lot of people on all sides who’re getting sanded or wasted in different ways.”

“Sanded?”

“Searched and Destroyed. It’s what we mostly seem to be doing over there. I’m glad I’m not doing it.”

“You said you’re in Search and Rescue.”

“That’s right. I’ve got a big helicopter, a Sikorsky CH-53. My job is to fly around looking for people in trouble, and get them out. We can do it by landing on the ground or the sea, or we can winch people straight out of the jungle if there isn’t room to land.”

“How many in the crew?”

"Five including me; Pilot, a co-pilot/navigator, a Winchman/door-gunner, a Medic/door-gunner, and the tail gunner."

“Three guns! On a rescue helicopter? That’s crazy.”

“The other side don’t like us rescuing our people so they’ll shoot us down if they can. Our guns are for defensive fire. To try and suppress their anti-aircraft. And we’ve got helpers. Spads, we call them, propellor planes which fly low and slow and strafe the bad guys with cannons and rockets. Then we go in for the pick-up.”

“And sometimes you get shot at. How does it feel?”

“Scary and exciting. You try and tune it out, and get on with the rescue.”

“Wow. You’re a kind of Kuudere rescue team.”

“I don’t know what that means.”

“It means you put yourself on the line and fight if you have to, to help people who need to be rescued.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad.” 

“It’s good!”

I am full, because I had some food at the tea dance, so I don’t want any dessert. Instead I ask Mike if he would like to see a bit more of The Server.

“Sure, that would be great.”

I take Mike to the Catgirl Sanctuary.

“This is wild, Chippy. This is like C’Mell in that story.”

“C’Mell?”

“She’s a Catgirl in an SF story. She’s the most beautiful girlygirl on Earth. Her job is to greet ambassadors from distant planets and so on, but she’s really only a slave.

“C’Mell falls in love with the richest man in the universe. He owns 1 million women but he doesn’t know what to do with them. He falls in love with C’Mell. He has himself turned into a Catman so he can be with her.

“They go into a dream together. They spend 1,000 years in the dream, going everywhere, seeing everything, having lots of kittens. The dream ends but they still remember everything. Finally the rich man turns himself back into a human, and he uses his money to set all the animal people free.”

“1,000 years of a dream of being in love! Isn’t one normal life enough?”

“Chippy, I haven’t got 1,000 years. I don’t know if I’ve got a normal life. I only know I’ve got one night.”

“Why, Mike? What’s going to happen?”

“My furlough ends tomorrow. I’ve got to go back to the war.”

I imagine Mike in his helicopter. The enemy guns are shooting at him. The tracer bullets float up slowly like fireflies, curved lines of fireflies trying to dance a net around his ship. But each glowing tracer is a stinging metal wasp.

I see the tracers hit the body of the helicopter. They hit the engines and sparks fly out as they pierce the armour. Smoke starts from the bullet holes, and a flame. The rotor slows down. The nose dips. I can see Mike in the cockpit, working the controls. He’s trying to save the helicopter. He’s fighting for everyone’s lives.

“Mike. Don’t go back! Something bad will happen. I know it will.”

“I’ve got to go back, Chippy. I have a duty. My crew need me. There’s all the people we’re going to save from the sea and the jungle.”

“Mike. I had a vision. I saw your helicopter get hit by bullets.”

“Did you see me crash?”

“No. You were working the controls. You were trying to save everyone.”

“Then maybe I save the ship. I don’t believe in fate. I believe we’ve always got a chance to change the world.”

“Please, Mike!”

“No, Chippy. I’ve got to go. Listen, Chippy… If I’ve got one night, I would like to spend it with you. I’ve got a good room at the hotel.”

I stare at him. I don’t know what to say.

He looks at me so intensely. “I know it’s a big thing,” he says quietly.

What should I do?

Does Mike love me? He hasn’t said anything like that. Do I love him? Does it even matter?

What is love? Is it just our genes driving us to replicate them? Is it just chemicals in the blood to make you dizzy and happy? Why do I feel dizzy now? Is this happiness? Is this love?

Is it possible to fall in love so fast? I can tell Mike’s a great guy. I really could fall for him, I think, if we had longer together. But he’s only got this one night.

Does it make me a slut to go with him, or a free girl making my own decision to take a lover for the enjoyment of us both?

“Chippy, I know what you’re thinking. Don’t come just for me. I shouldn’t have asked you. It was stupid. I’m sorry.”

“Mike. I’ll come with you.”

Mike sighs. He holds out his hand and I take it. We walk slowly to his hotel. It’s a good one, the Rialto.

“I splashed out a bit, because I wanted to have a good furlough.”

He has a big room with several seats. There’s a view to the east, where the full moon is rising. I sit in an easy chair and Mike offers me a whisky. Scotch malt, with soda water and ice. He has one for himself, and sits down too.

“Mike, I’m not on the pill. I’m sorry to be blunt about it.”

“I’ve got protection. US Air Force standard issue. They don’t want us coming back from furloughs with any medical problems.”

“As if I would have anything like that!” I was kind of angry at the idea.

“Most airmen on furlough aren’t going with proper ladies and girlfriends. They’re going with joygirls.”

“Have you gone with joygirls, Mike?”

“Yes. A few times. I’m not proud of it. I felt guilty about it. But the war, it makes you want to… to get what you can. You might be dead the next day.”

“I understand.”

He seems a bit down. I don’t want children, but I understand the genes. They want to replicate themselves. They drive our instincts.

“Now you know that, Chippy, about what I’ve done. If you don’t want to stay... I mean it’s not a nice thing to think about.”

“It’s okay. It’s the war. It’s your instincts.”

I finish my drink.

“Where’s the bathroom?”

There’s a huge jacuzzi bath. I start to fill it. I put in bubble bath fluid so it fills with a thick layer of foam. I have a wee and brush my teeth. I get two bathrobes and go back to the bedroom.

“Mike, can you turn the lights down? I’m shy. I want to undress by myself and go to the bath. Then you can come in, and we’ll have a bath together.”

Mike goes into the bathroom for a few minutes. When he comes out, I’ve changed and hung up my dress neatly. I go to the bathroom. The bath is nearly full, so I stop filling it and start the jacuzzi and get in. There’s foam everywhere.

Mike comes in wearing his bathrobe. There’s a dimmer switch for the lights and he turns them down low.

“Chippy, I’m shy too. Do you mind looking the other way?”

It’s kind of cute. My strong, mature airforce pilot, shy of a girl looking at him naked. I look away, and he gets into the bath with me.

First we enjoy washing each other, then we go on to do much more. It’s so exciting, the hot water, the feeling of floating, the foam which conceals our bodies from each other’s eyes although we’re together so intimately, the slipperiness of each other’s skin. 

We caress each other. He’s already excited. He stops me from touching him, and pulls me against him, kisses me deeply. He’s petting my breasts, my whole body.

It’s so exciting! I can’t help but let myself go. I relax with a deep sigh.

After a while it’s time to go to the bed.

It seems silly to be shy now, after what we’ve already done together. I get out of the bath, dripping foam, and wrap myself in a towel. I use another towel to dry my hair, then I change into my bathrobe and get into the bed.

Mike comes out of the bathroom wearing his robe. He gets into the bed, pulls me into his arms and kisses me hungrily. He starts to take the bathrobe off me, kissing the skin he uncovers.

I’m trying to guide his head with my hands, to make him kiss the right places, at the same time that I get his robe off him to kiss him back.

We speak our needs and desires to each other with touch and sighs and moans, and the simplest words; yes, no, please, there, more, faster…!

I feel myself dissolving, my head going blank. I feel Mike inside me. I feel him let go, with a deep sigh and a moan. We collapse, desire fulfilled. 

After a few minutes Mike stirs. He caresses me.

“Chippy, that was… so great. Listen now, I have to tidy things up, so please take care.”

Mike means he has to deal with the condom. He does it properly, and I go for a wash. Mike comes in for a wash too.

We turn the light up, to see each other’s bodies properly, which we now know so intimately by touch.

Is music the great communicator, or maybe it’s sex, or what else, poetry?

How can people ever really know they have connected with each other on a deep, soul level? Perhaps Goddess is the answer, even though I don’t believe in her. Maybe I should try.

We do our best, and we hope it’s enough, and often it isn’t, and we cry. And we try to do better next time.

Mike caresses my head. He kisses the nape of my neck, and he starts to cry. He goes back to the bedroom. When I come out, he’s sitting on the bed, with a glass of whisky and soda.

“Would you like one, Chippy?”

“I’ll have a small one, please.”

He pours it for me. I sit on the bed wrapped in a dry towel. He’s still naked. His strength has entirely gone. 

“Why are you crying, Mike?”

“Because I’m happy. For one night I’m happy.”

“Do you want to play again?”

“Do you, Chippy?”

“I’m satisfied. I’ve enjoyed myself twice. But how about you?”

“It was great. It’s more than enough. Let’s cuddle and sleep now.”

We finish our drinks and get into bed. Falling asleep in each other’s arms sounds romantic, but it’s actually a bit uncomfortable. Instead, we hold hands as we drift off.

I wake up in the light of early dawn. The bed is empty and feels cold.

“Mike?”

No answer. I get up to look for him. His clothes are gone, his luggage is gone, he is gone, and there is a letter.

*****

Dearest Chippy,

I’m sorry to leave like this.

You’re the most wonderful girl I’ve ever known. I’m so happy, and so sad, but I must go.

It’s better to go without long tearful goodbyes, or I might decide to stay. I can’t risk that danger of shirking my duty.

Please don’t be too angry with me.

I will think of you every day. Please remember me, and I will come back if ever I can.

With all my Love,

Mike

*****

I fold the note and put it into my purse. I drop .uinfo @lt_mike. Blank. Nothing there. He’s Left The Server.

I feel numb. I wash and dress slowly. I leave the hotel and walk back to Pink Home and my Palace.

As I walk, I think about Lieutenant Mike Comulada, my lover of one night. I begin to weep.

I weep for joy of the love we shared. I weep for sadness of the love we’ve lost. I weep for hope of the love that may be renewed, if Mike can outwit his fate in the web of burning tracer bullets.

I get to my front door. Yancy is waiting for me. He hugs me, and comforts me with soft words and head pats.

“There, there, Princess. I can tell by your face that you’ve loved and lost. I know it’s hard. I’ve been through that same mill. Eventually you will come out the other side.”

“Will I?”

“Yes. It’s very hard now, but you will.”

THE END

© 2020 Starship Captain 88


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